Climatic Adversities and Child Health in India: Integrating Modelled Data on Air Pollution, Heatwaves, and Rainfall Extremes with DHS Surveys

Mihir Adhikary, International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS)
Nandita Saikia, International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS)

This study investigates the associations between climatic adversities, such as air pollution, heatwaves, and rainfall extremes, and child health outcomes (stunting, wasting, underweight, anemia, and acute respiratory infections) in India. A primary goal of this research is to demonstrate how integrating modelled environmental data with DHS data can develop more comprehensive analysis strategies. Our methodology involved extracting modelled PM2.5, hourly temperature and daily rainfall data from different sources. These environmental exposures were linked to each sampled child's in-utero period to estimate the in-utero exposure. To examine the effects, we employed generalized linear (with logit function when necessary) models. High PM2.5 exposure was associated with a 20% increased risk of anemia (OR:1.20,CI:1.05–1.36) and a 15% increased risk of stunting (OR:1.15,CI:1.02–1.30) and a reduction in birth weight by 18 grams (ß:-18 grams, CI:-35 to -1). Heatwave exposure during pregnancy was linked to a 14% increased risk of ARI, a 10% increased risk of wasting and and underweight (OR:1.14,CI:1.02–1.28). Excess rainfall was associated with a 23 gram reduction in birth weight and a 10% increased risk of wasting, while insufficient rainfall correlated with an 18% increased risk of anemia and a 12% increased risk of stunting.

Keywords: Geo-referenced/geo-coded data, Remote sensing, Health and Morbidity, Linked data sets

See extended abstract.